Her 12- and 14-year-old sons don't like to talk about it. But it's been a year -- last Father's Day to be exact -- since they spoke with their father. Their mother, a Lehigh County resident who asked that her name not be used, remembers the day as though it were yesterday. Things had been tense since their father moved out a few months before. But the brothers were looking forward to spending Father's Day with their dad. Maybe they would go out to lunch. Then the phone rang. It was their father.

Mike Ohl said that without his father's influence, he would have never been involved with fastpitch softball and never become the person he is today. That's why Ohl, a 48-year-old Allentown native, couldn't be happier than to share one of the biggest honors of his life with his late father, Jack Ohl, this weekend. Mike and Jack Ohl will be inducted into the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of Pennsylvania Hall of Fame on Saturday at the Holiday Inn in Grantville. The Ohls will be joined in the induction class by Jeff Sell, another fixture on the local softball scene.

You'll often find Chris Routly of Breinigsville, like most dads, busily plying the tools of his trade. Except that on a breezy Thursday morning at Upper Macungie Township's Earl Adams Memorial Park, those tools are his Chicco baby carrier, Joovy "caboose" model fold-up stroller and a steady hand on the swing set. Routly is one of a growing cadre of stay-at-home dads who have chosen to devote themselves to child-rearing rather than punching the...

Father's Day is just a few days away, and anyone who has a dad interested in the great outdoors doesn't have to look very far, very hard or very long to find some wonderful gifts that will make him smile year-round. Even with the loss of Nestor's on MacArthur Road in Whitehall, Lehigh Valley outdoors enthusiasts still have go-to destinations in L.L. Bean at the Promenade Shops in Center Valley, and Cabela's in Hamburg, as well as a slew of smaller mom-and-pop fishing and gun shops throughout the area.

Mike Ohl said that without his father's influence, he would have never been involved with fastpitch softball and never become the person he is today. That's why Ohl, a 48-year-old Allentown native, couldn't be happier than to share one of the biggest honors of his life with his late father, Jack Ohl, this weekend. Mike and Jack Ohl will be inducted into the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of Pennsylvania Hall of Fame on Saturday at the Holiday Inn in Grantville. The Ohls will be joined in the induction class by Jeff Sell, another fixture on the local softball scene.

To the Editor: I realize it is now a week past Father's Day. Many Father's days have come and gone between my daddy and me. As I was sitting here looking at my daddy's face, I realized I have never fully told him how much I have appreciated and loved him. It suddenly struck me that my daddy's going to retire from his job soon, and he's getting older. He will not be here someday. I will not be able to ask his advice on money matters, gardening and about household repairs. When my brothers, sister and I were growing up, we never fully realized how much daddy really loved us. My daddy was the so-called "strong and silent" type of daddy, who showed his love in other ways.

Three men and women will get together and bury the hatchet today to garner support for legislation to clear the Pennsylvania courts of many divorce settlement cases. Father's and Children's Equality and PURGE (Parents United for Reformed Justice and Equality) will co-sponsor a Father's Day gathering at Penn's Landing, Philadelphia, which will be highlighted by a symbolic burying of a silver hatchet. Three men and three women will bury the hatchet under a grave- style monument marked "divorce wars," and then feed each other cake as another symbolic gesture.

A fund has been established at Meridian Bank for donations to finance a reunion between a former Allentown man and his son who have spent the last 18 years apart. Michael Shea Santos' search for his father, Ronald Armand Santos, ended Tuesday when he learned his father was living in Manchester, N.H. The two spoke for the first time by telephone later that night. Michael, 19, who lives in Boone, N.C., was hoping to meet his father by Sunday, Father's Day, but neither has enough money for travel expenses.

You'll often find Chris Routly of Breinigsville, like most dads, busily plying the tools of his trade. Except that on a breezy Thursday morning at Upper Macungie Township's Earl Adams Memorial Park, those tools are his Chicco baby carrier, Joovy "caboose" model fold-up stroller and a steady hand on the swing set. Routly is one of a growing cadre of stay-at-home dads who have chosen to devote themselves to child-rearing rather than punching the...

This will be great weekend to do something fun with dad and some area attractions are offering free or discounted tickets to celebrate Father's Day. Dads get free admission to the Da Vinci Science Center Sunday with the purchase of a child's admission. Take dad to explore the new "How People Make Things" exhibit which takes visitors through the entire manufacturing process for making crayons, golf carts, ice cream cups, baseball gloves, and other popular products. The center is open 12-5 p.m. Admission is $11.95; $8.95, ages 3-12.

While Jon Gosselin may not be the world's best dad he's still considered a father. On June 20, Jon and new girlfriend Ellen Ross,23, took the kids for a trip to the Pocono Mountains to spend Father's Day together. The gang enjoyed the day looking at wildlife while they explored hiking trails and ponds around the nature preserve. The kids no longer seem fazed by Ellen tagging around on these outings. Maybe they aren't used to her but that fact that daddy always has some strange girl with him. The two have been dating for several months now. While the kids were off with dad, Kate got a chance to run errands without her children tagging along.

In recognition of Father's Day on Sunday, we sent out a call for fathers and sons (or daughters) who thought they resemble each other. We received more than 40 submissions. It was a tough choice, but we picked four fathers and what clearly were four chips off the old block. Here are their portraits and stories. You can check out all the other father/child look-alikes at themorningcall.com. JANSON IS 'MINI-ME' When Janson Hildenbrand was born last fall, his mother Amanda Hildenbrand hoped her newborn son would resemble her, at least a little.

It's almost unimaginable, even frightening to think about, but believe it or not, there once was a time when your dad was just a dude. He probably went out to bars and clubs and partied with his friends. He most likely went on a few crazy adventures. Heck, he probably even dated other women before he met your mom. Yes, that guy on the recliner blasting the television at an unholy volume probably, at one point, had a life that revolved around other things besides complaining about the neighbor's dog. This Father's Day, skip the ties, golf balls and gift cards for coffee.

Have you ever been told how much you look your father? We came across a photo of actors Kirk and Michael Douglas, who undeniably share a strong family resemblance. And we started wondering how many sons or daughters in the Lehigh Valley also look a lot like their dads. In recognition of Father's Day, we are conducting a search for the best father/child look-alikes. Please submit photos and we will post them on themorningcall.com. Viewers can vote online for the pairs you think look the most alike.

Tony Mazziotta is seeing a zebra of a different stripe. He says he's thrilled. The stripes are brown, to be specific. Mazziotta, director of the Trexler-Lehigh County Game Preserve, is happy about a specific different stripe - the birth late last week of the first zebra conceived and born at the preserve. Newborn zebras have brown and white stripes rather than the more usual black and white variety. This newborn arrived late Thursday or early Friday, Mazziotta said. It stood confidently by its mother's side yesterday afternoon.

Father's Day took on a whole new meaning this year for David Mayers of Whitehall Township. He spends some time with 1-month-old David Andrew outside near their home in Olympic Gardens and is unable to resist a taste of that tiny ear.

Even though more out-of-work executives are on the interview circuit, neckties still can't muster a comeback. As the unemployment rate climbed to 10 percent last year, tie industry executives pinned their hopes on men purchasing new ties to dress up their old suits. But that didn't happen. Instead, suit sales in the U.S. rebounded to end 2009 virtually unchanged from a year earlier, a marked improvement after years of decline. Ties, on the other hand, had their worst year since the dawn of casual Fridays relegated neckwear to the back of the closet.

For years, we've been betting $1 on every Giants-Eagles game. I attended church a couple of Sundays ago and discovered it was All Saints' Day. I'm a Presbyterian. On that Sunday every year, we recognize the church members who have died over the last 12 months -- the ministers read their names -- as well as the idea that all believers in Christ, living or dead, are saints. The minister spoke about our natural desire to find connections and about the real connection we all have as part of God's continuing story.